— Europe lists 91 banks taking part in financial stress tests, which are expected to provide more detail about problematic assets, including bonds issued by peripheral euro zone countries and loan exposures to troubled pockets.

June 30 – A strike by Spanish underground rail workers causes more traffic chaos in Madrid as unions threaten further stoppages over austerity measures.

June 29 – About 10,000 people take part in marches across Athens during a nationwide strike against austerity measures.

— Greece starts to debate overhaul of pensions to raise women’s retirement age from 60 to match men at 65 and demand more years at work to qualify for a pension. Greece’s debt reached 133 percent of GDP in 2010.

June 25 – The CGIL, Italy’s biggest union with 6 million members, holds rallies in Rome, Milan and other cities to force the government to redraft a 25-billion-euro austerity package.

June 24 – The cost of protecting government debt against default in Greece hits a record high. It costs to 958,000 euros to insure 10 million euros-worth of government bonds.

June 8 – Spain’s unions say 75 percent of public sector workers stay at home in a protest against austerity plans. Government says real number of strikers is far smaller.

June 7 – German Chancellor Angela Merkel’s coalition agrees a package of budget cuts and taxes to bring Germany’s deficit within EU limits by 2013 and set an example to Europe. The plan aims to deliver 80 billion euros of savings over three years.

May 28 – Fitch cuts Spain’s credit rating in response to record household and corporate debt and mounting public debt.

May 27 – Spain’s government wins parliamentary approval for its 15 billion euro austerity package by a single vote.

May 25 – Italy approves a 24 billion euro austerity package with the aim of cutting the deficit to 2.7 percent of GDP in 2012 from 5.3 percent in 2009.

May 18 – Germany announces a unilateral ban on "naked" short selling of shares in its top 10 financial institutions, euro zone government bonds and related credit default swaps.

May 13 – Portugal’s prime minister and opposition leader draw up steps to slash the deficit, including public sector pay cuts. The deficit is due to fall to 4.6 percent in 2011 from 9.4 percent in 2009.

May 10 – Global policymakers install an emergency financial safety net for the euro zone worth 750 billion euros to calm financial markets and avert contagion from the Greek crisis. The package consists of 440 billion euros in guarantees from euro zone states, plus 60 billion euros in a European debt instrument. The IMF is to contribute 250 billion euros.

May 6 – Greek parliament approves austerity bill.

May 2 – Prime Minister George Papandreou says Greece has reached a deal with the EU and IMF opening the door to a bailout in return for extra savings of 30 billion euros over three years. Athens will get loans worth 110 billion euros in installments conditional on reforms over three years in the first rescue of a member of the 16-nation euro zone.

April 27 – Standard & Poor’s downgrades Greek government debt to junk status. The next day it downgrades Spain’s debt because of poor growth prospects.

— S&P cuts Portugal’s rating by two notches to A-minus, saying Portuguese finances were structurally weak and the economy uncompetitive.

April 23 – Papandreou asks for activation of EU/IMF aid.

April 22 – Eurostat says Greece’s 2009 budget deficit was 13.6 percent of GDP, not the 12.7 percent it had reported.